Description
This Garlic Confit Butter Lobster Tails recipe offers a luxurious and flavorful seafood dish perfect for summer barbecues. Slow-roasted garlic in olive oil is blended into a rich herb butter that perfectly complements the sweet lobster meat, which is grilled to tender, smoky perfection and served with charred lemon slices for a burst of citrus.
Ingredients
Scale
Main Ingredients
- 1.5 kg lobster tails (3.3 pounds)
- 2 bulbs garlic
- 1 cup extra virgin olive oil (250 mL)
- 250 g salted butter at room temp (1/2 pound)
- 30 g chives, roughly chopped (1 oz)
- 30 g parsley, roughly chopped (1 oz)
- 1 lemon (sliced into 4 cm rings)
- salt + pepper to taste
Instructions
- Preheat Oven: Preheat your oven to 130 degrees Celsius to prepare for slow roasting the garlic.
- Prepare Garlic: Separate the cloves from the garlic bulbs and place them into a heatproof bowl. Cover the cloves with boiling water for 5 minutes, then drain. This loosens the skins for easy peeling.
- Roast Garlic: Place the peeled garlic cloves in an ovenproof dish and pour extra virgin olive oil over them, ensuring the garlic is fully submerged to prevent burning. Roast in the oven for 1 hour 30 minutes until the garlic softens and olive oil bubbles gently.
- Separate Garlic and Oil: Remove the garlic cloves from the oil. Store the garlic-infused olive oil in a sterilized jar on the countertop for future use.
- Make Garlic Butter: In a food processor, combine the garlic confit cloves, salted butter, chives, parsley, salt, and pepper. Blend until smooth. Alternatively, finely chop herbs and mash all ingredients by hand to create the butter.
- Butterfly Lobster Tails: Using kitchen scissors, cut through the top of the hard shell lengthwise, placing the scissors between the meat and shell. Slice down the middle of the shell, keeping the tail intact. Season the lobster meat with salt and pepper and drizzle with reserved garlic-infused olive oil.
- Preheat BBQ Grill: Heat your barbecue grill to high on the grill side and close the lid to reach about 200 degrees Celsius (390 degrees Fahrenheit).
- Melt Garlic Butter: While the BBQ is heating, melt approximately half of the garlic confit butter in a small saucepan or microwave. Reserve the rest in the refrigerator for up to 4 weeks.
- Grill Lobster Tails: Place the lobster tails flesh side down onto the direct heat grill. Scatter lemon slices around them. Close the lid and cook for 6 minutes until lobster flesh turns pink with slight char.
- Flip, Baste, and Cook: Using metal tongs, flip the lobster tails and lemon slices. Baste lobster meat with melted garlic butter, closing the lid and repeating basting every minute for 4 minutes. Reserve some butter for serving. Remove cooked lobster and lemons from grill and allow to rest briefly.
- Serve: Drizzle lobster tails with remaining melted butter and squeeze the charred lemon slices over them. Serve immediately for best flavor.
Notes
- The garlic confit butter enhances the lobster with rich garlic and herb flavor.
- Slow roasting the garlic in olive oil prevents any burning and yields a sweet, mellow garlic taste.
- Use kitchen scissors for easy butterfly cuts of lobster shells without damaging the meat.
- Charred lemon slices add a smoky citrus brightness to the dish.
- Reserve leftover garlic butter in the fridge for up to four weeks and use for seafood or bread.
- This dish is perfect for outdoor summer barbecue gatherings.
Nutrition
- Serving Size: 1 lobster tail (375 g)
- Calories: 570 kcal
- Sugar: 1 g
- Sodium: 560 mg
- Fat: 46 g
- Saturated Fat: 27 g
- Unsaturated Fat: 17 g
- Trans Fat: 0 g
- Carbohydrates: 3 g
- Fiber: 1 g
- Protein: 32 g
- Cholesterol: 190 mg
